km Archive


The archive of the Kunstverein München comprises transcripts, correspondence, photographs, publications, posters, flyers, videos, bills and other ephemera from over 200 years of the institution’s history since its foundation in 1823. The largest part of the collection is stored in the Stadtarchiv München as a depository, while the Kunstverein’s Archive Space provides a non-circulating collection of printed matter, publications and other materials relating to the Kunstverein’s exhibitions from 1969 to the present day that is accessible to Kunstverein visitors.

The Archive Space, designed by Julian Göthe, has been an integral part of the Kunstverein München since 2020 and provides a concrete location for the mediation and preservation of the Kunstverein’s more than 200-year history. In addition to the common archival fields of activity—cataloging, storing, expanding and maintaining the collection—the activities of km Archive also include a regular public program. In events with researchers, artists and contemporary witnesses, the Kunstverein engages in critical reflection on its own history as well as its gaps. In addition, each exhibition is accompanied by a presentation of related material in the Archive Space. In a quarterly Archive Newsletter, important content from the Kunstverein’s history is taken up and contextualized in the light of current debates. Alongside research and commentaries by the archivists, guest contributions are also published here. All issues of the Archive Newsletter are available on the website of Kunstverein München. Under the tab Program you will also find a chronicle of all exhibitions of the institution since its foundation in 1823.

As the Kunstverein does not have its own collection, the contemplation of its own archive allows a multi-layered examination of the institution’s socio-cultural mission in a historical context. The archive’s focus is on developing a method for future knowledge organization: What form does historical documentation take when incorporating artistic and curatorial practices alongside academic work? Only through this combination, a multi-layered, polyphonic and subjective reading of history that does justice to the complexity of the archive is possible.

This ongoing archival work is a relatively recent focus of the Kunstverein München. For one, anniversaries simply offer an occasion to look back at one’s own history. Telling Histories, the exhibition initiated by Maria Lind in 2003 for the 180-year anniversary, situated itself in this continuity. After Alexander Wagner was initially entrusted with the administration of archive material as the first employee from 2016, the expansion of this position was made possible by a donation from board member Martina Fuchs. The great interest of the then director Chris Fritzpatrick in the archival work of the Kunstverein provided decisive impetus. From 2017 to 2019, Theresa Bauernfeind was responsible for the archive of the Kunstverein and created a large part of its current administrative structure. In preparation for the 200th anniversary from 2019, director Maurin Dietrich and curator Gloria Hasnay sharpened the institution’s focus on its archive. This was manifested both programmatically in exhibitions, events and the archive as a fixed architectural component of the building, as well as structurally in the continuous digitization and acquisition of archive materials. In addition, a distinct, 32-hour archivist position was created in 2020. Adrian Djukic filled this position from 2020 to 2022. Since 2022, the km Archive has been managed by Johanna Klingler and Jonas von Lenthe.

Retrieving and examining Nazi structures within the Kunstverein in the first half of the 20th century is a central aspect of the archive’s work. While the Kunstverein’s nineteenth-century history is conveyed in relatively dense form in minutes and account books, hardly any material was retained between 1907 and 1969. From 1969 onwards, the materials accumulated at the Kunstverein München archive once again, and luckily, contain a relatively comprehensive collection of documents leading up to the present day. The basis for the historical examination during the Nazi era is therefore largely formed by documents from other archives. In this context, the artist Bea Schlingelhoff’s investigation into the Kunstverein’s structure and Nazi history in the course of her 2021 exhibition No River to Cross deserves mentioning. Another important step in the reappraisal process is the text by art historian Christian Fuhrmeister entitled The Kunstverein München During the Nazi Era. What to Ask, How to do Research?, which was published in the anniversary publication FOR NOW. 200 Years of Kunstverein München in 2023.

The documents stored in the Stadtarchiv / City Archive can be viewed in the reading room there. The minutes and account books from the 19th century have now been fully digitized by Bavarikon and can be viewed via this link. The text On the Origins and Methodology of the Kunstverein München Archive in the anniversary catalog FOR NOW by Johanna Klingler and Jonas von Lenthe provides more in-depth insights into the archive work of the Kunstverein. If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact us at johanna@kunstverein-muenchen.de, jonas@kunstverein-muenchen.de or archiv@kunstverein-muenchen.de.